


If you go down to the woods…

by ermengarde



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Gen, Weechesters, bluebear
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-05-26
Updated: 2008-05-26
Packaged: 2017-11-26 02:02:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,785
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/645327
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ermengarde/pseuds/ermengarde
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sammy’s a little worried about his Bear. And vegetables. And he’s trying to tell his Daddy all about it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	If you go down to the woods…

John collapsed onto the ratty old couch and let his head roll over the low back, leaving him looking at the gray, cracked ceiling. He closed his eyes, shutting out the messy room and tried to ignore the fact that he was sitting on part of the wooden frame instead of the stretched canvas that sagged in the middle of each seat; he could have moved, but exhaustion was beating discomfort hands down.

There was the loud bang of a door slamming and then small, bony knees digging into his thigh and excited, hot, small boy leaning into his side.

“Daddy!”

John took a deep breath and bit back a frustrated groan. “Yes, Sammy?”

“Daddy, Blue Bear’s hungry.” A fluffy blue paw was shoved in the direction of his nose, apparently to back up Sammy’s assertion.

With some effort, given the gravity of the couch seemed to have increased tenfold, John lifted his head. “Didn’t Dean get you guys dinner?”

Sammy stared at him earnestly, nodding emphatically and looking a little confused. “Uh… mmh hmm Daddy; Dean made me scapettios, n’milk, n’cookies, n’said I was a good brother cos I finished all my dinner n’didn’t ask for just cookies even though I wanted to. Scappettios taste all soft like _baby_ food but Dean said they were almost as good as vegetables even though they’re _orange_.”

Thankfully, Sammy still had to stop to breathe.

“Samsam, _carrots_ are orange, so are sweet potatoes – H…eck they even named the color after a fruit!” John wasn’t entirely sure what flight of fancy Sammy was trying to embark on with his bear, but if it could be deflected with a nice bit of logical, _comprehensible_ , conversation about vegetables then he’d be happy. Sammy got all sorts of funny ideas into his head if you weren’t careful… The time he’d decided that’s Bobby’s dog – a huge, slavering Doberman - was actually _The Littlest Hobo_ wasn’t going to follow any logic _John_ could work out any time soon.

“It’s _different_ , Daddy.” Sammy gave him his best ‘don’t be silly, Daddy’ look.

“Oh?”

“Yes. Big Bird ‘splained all about vegetables n’vitamins, n’how they make you big.” Sammy let out a huff. “I need more vegetables.”

John tried to stop a smile playing across his face at Sammy’s attempts to educate him. His youngest was a bright spark – hell, both his boys were – and he had a sneaking suspicion that it wouldn’t be long before they _did_ know more than him. Maybe he _had_ been a little lax with their diets recently.

Sammy was still right up in his face, green eyes serious, and he pulled himself back to the conversation. “Well, you can be in charge of vegetables next time we go grocery shopping, son.”

“Okay, Daddy.” Sammy screwed up his nose, thinking. “Tomorrow, Daddy? Blue Bear needs some things too.”

“Really?”

“Mmh-hmm – honey and…”Sammy bit his lip and looked up to the ceiling, obviously trying to remember something. “Bread for honey, and hot tea in case he’s cold and M’n’Ms cos they’re the best.” He finished in a rush.

Scheming for more M &Ms had _Dean_ written all over it. “What’s your brother got to say about what Blue Bear wants?” John said seriously, keeping all trace of amusement from his voice.

Sammy pouted, and that was very cute on his chubby, baby face, but John suspected that it would be a great deal less attractive in a few years time. “Dean said I was stupid.”

John put his arm around his baby boy and pulled him and his bear into a tight hug. “You’re a lot of things, Sammy...” He said into Sammy’s hair. “But stupid isn’t one of them.” It wasn’t like Dean to grouse at his brother, no matter how annoying Sammy got – call him stupid names, sure, but not actually _stupid_. He squeezed his son and then loosened his grip. “What was Dean doing when you asked him?”

“Cookin’” Sammy grumped.

“Then he was probably worried that you’d get hurt on the stove, kiddo – he said you were a good brother after that, didn’t he?” Sammy nodded, _yes_. “And you can’t be stupid _and_ a good brother, can you?”

John tickled Sammy’s ribs as he asked the question and Sammy screwed up his face and shook his head, _no_ , as he convulsed with giggles. “No! Stoppit, Daddy!” Sammy batted at John’s tickling fingers, and John stopped and ruffled Sammy’s too-long bangs.

John poked Blue Bear gently in his middle. “So, tell me, why does Blue Bear need all those things?”

Sammy’s face split into a wide, gap-toothed, grin. “For the picnic!”

John was pretty sure that Sammy had never been on a picnic, Dean had but… It was something Mary had done; a Mary thing for a different family, living in a different world. He swallowed hard. “What picnic, Sammy?”

Sammy rolled his eyes. “The _Teddy Bear’s_ picnic Daddy, in the _woods_.”

 _Oh_ … The problem with the kids knowing about the bad things out there in the dark was that they tended to believe that _every_ thing was true, all the stories and legends, until John told them otherwise; or Sammy did, anyway. Dean had gotten over that childish wonder stage of believing in good fairies and Santa so long ago that John could barely remember it.

“I, uh, I don’t think that’s tomorrow, son.”

“I know.” Sammy was biting his lip again and that was a habit John would need to break him of. “The song on the TV said it was today but we missed it, and we’re not allowed to go out without you, I know, and you’re home tomorrow, and there might be some other bears that couldn’t go today, and…”Sammy trailed off, eyes suddenly liquid and John couldn’t help but gather him into another long, tight, hug.

His boys had nothing; their innocence and joy had burnt away with Mary and he’d never had time – never wanted – to give it back. His boys needed to be able to protect themselves and he needed to keep them safe.

Sammy was beginning to fidget against the tight constraints of the hug, but John wasn’t ready to let go just yet; he couldn’t let Sammy be innocent of the world around him but maybe he could give him a little something, a little wonder.

oOo

John had been ready to drop when he came home; now he was through exhaustion and somewhere out into the other side – he couldn’t remember ever being this tired, not even when he was in the service, slogging through enemy mud – and instead of being sacked out on the couch he was pushing a cart with a wonky wheel round an over-bright all night store.

Finally, he found what he was looking for and put them in the cart along with the bread and honey, and candy, and headed to the checkout line.

He still had a bit of work to do before he finally got home and he’d need to speak to Dean before they all headed out tomorrow, but hopefully it would go off like he planned. The sky was clear as he headed out to the car and he looked up at the bright, shining star that he had pointed out to Sammy as _Mary_ one night when nightmares of ‘NoMommyNoDaddyNoDean’ had stopped him getting to sleep.

“Help me do this, Mary? I can keep them safe, but I can’t… I can’t do the _family_ stuff for them… please…”

oOo

The next morning was bright and sunny, and gently warm. Dean had woken him with a mug of good, strong, coffee and Sammy had shared his bowl of _Lucky Charms_. He’d managed to have a quiet word with Dean and get him on board with the plan.

John rolled his shoulders, wincing as his bones creaked and popped, and looked at the clock. It was time to go. “Boys, come on, we’re going out.”

There was a clatter from the boys’ room and a few moments later Sammy came galloping out, apparently riding an invisible horse.

“Woah there, partner.” John smiled at his boy. “You all ready to go out?”

“Yep!” Sammy stuck out his feet in turn to demonstrate his shoe-tying prowess.

Dean snuck into the room behind him, flashing John the contents of his pack. “He tied those himself Dad – only took him two attempts, too!”

Sammy turned to glare at his brother. “ _You_ said I did good, Dean.”

John stifled a smile and grabbed the kit bag he’d prepared the night before. “Car, boys. Now.”

They drove with the windows rolled down and the music loud enough to almost be called blasting and the boys sang along good humouredly, enjoying the day and the ride.

John pulled over into an overgrown gateway. “Sammy – you’ll need to get out Dean’s side. It’s muddy at your door.”

“Where are we, Daddy?”

“I’ve been doing some research, boys, and there’s something here I need to check out. It should be safe enough and I’d rather not leave you in the car when there are so many people driving past. Sammy, you walk behind me, Dean you bring up the rear and look out for your brother.”

“Yessir!” Dean almost saluted.

They tramped through the leafy undergrowth, dappled sunlight playing across their faces. John breathed deeply, smelling the heady mix of new green shoots and the leaf mold beneath their feet, smiling at the _normality_ of a family picnic in the woods. They didn’t do this kind of thing nearly often enough.

Suddenly, he dropped to a crouch, holding his hand up in the _stop_ signal. The boys both stopped stock still; when he started moving slowly forward, they moved quietly after him. Sammy’s gasp as they rounded the end of a tangled jumble of bush and ivy was worth the loss of a good night’s sleep.

His baby practically clambered up his back in an attempt to whisper in his ear. “Daddy!” He hissed. “They’re _here_! Ohhh, but…” Sammy’s arms tightened round John’s shoulders and he almost sobbed. “I din’t bring Blue Bear…”

“Hey! Squirt! Something in my pack keeps kicking me.” Dean had pulled off his bag and opened it. The instant a fluffy, blue paw appeared out the top, Sammy yelled and launched himself at his Bear.

John didn’t even try to hold back his laughter as Sammy ran right into the middle of the Bear party that John had set up the night before; some of the cheap bears he’d put in little groups around plastic boxes containing candy and cans of soda were kinda weird colors but Sammy didn’t seem to notice, and he willingly went with Dean to ‘meet’ them all.


End file.
